With Manuel Margot on the paternity list, Myers is the only center field option on the Padres’ active roster. Pirela was recalled from Triple-A El Paso to fill out the bench.

Wil Myers in center field, flanked by Hunter Renfroe in left and Franmil Reyes in right, is an intriguing look when the Padres want to super-size their power potential. The Padres test-drove that alignment in spring training with the understanding that speedy guys off the bench would allow them to recalibrate the defense in the later innings.

That won’t be an option this weekend.

Manuel Margot was placed on the paternity leave list Friday as he and his wife, Rachell, welcomed a second son to their family. Travis Jankowski is already out with a broken wrist and Franchy Corderois on the injured list with a right elbow sprain, leaving Myers as the lone option in center field until Margot’s return, perhaps by Sunday.

Padres manager Andy Green, too, remains a fan of Myers’ potential in center field despite his history there. He cost the team seven defensive runs saved as the starter there in 2015, according to fangraphs.com, and even committed an error on his first chance in center field this year.

“It’s about taking charge and owning the spot when he has the opportunity to do,” Green said. “If he does that, it’s a unique offensive lineup that we can put out there. It’s always nice to have a defender to unwind it, whether it’s Jankowski or Margot or Franchy.

“Over the next couple of days we don’t really have that so our big boys will be out there making big plays for us.”

A day after returning from a 24-hour bug that knocked him from the lineup, Myers joked that the error he committed on April — struggling to pick a ball up off the warning track after it caromed off the wall — could have happened just as easily in left field. His comfort in the position overall is greatly improved, especially with an athletic shortstop in Fernando Tatis Jr. allowing him to play deeper than he did when the Padres tried him in center field to start 2015.

“Just being able to play deeper is nice, especially when you have guys like Tatis who can run out there to make a play,” Myers said. “It’s nice to be able play deeper to hold guys to single. I think it’s the most productive way to play center field.”

Pirela returns

Ever the realist, Jose Pirela understood the decision to start him at Triple-A El Paso earlier this month despite slugging .717 over 25 games this spring. The Padres spent $300 million to add Manny Machado to the lineup, Pirela’s OPS dipped to .645 when given his opportunity to corral a starting job and the bench had no more room for right-handed hitters who were defensive upgrades.

“I wouldn’t say I was disappointed,” the 29-year-old Pirela said. “The Padres, to their credit, went out and made a bunch of moves to transform this organization for the better. I understand that. When I started (in El Paso) I wasn’t disappointed. This is something I’ve dealt with before. I’m used to being in this position. I took it with pride and took it in such a way knowing that I would be part of the team at some point and I would contribute.”

That time is now. The Padres recalled Pirela as a short-term bench option during Margot’s leave after he posted a .383/.457/.700 batting line with four homers and 21 RBIs in 15 games to start the year in the Pacific Coast League.

Pirela worked vigorously this offseason to add lift to a swing that produced an average launch angle of 4.7 degrees in 2018, 177th out of the 186 batters with at least 300 balls in play. The early success can be attributed to the mechanical changes sticking.

“That’s something I worked on in the offseason,” he said. “At this point I’m not going up there thinking about that. I’m trying to have good at-bats and let what I worked on happen.”

Notable

Pirela played two games in center field at El Paso, but Green quipped that Tatis might be ahead of Pirela on the depth chart if the Padres find themselves needing to replace Myers at some point this weekend. Pirela most likely will come off the bench to play second base or a corner outfield spot.

Even with two off-days next week, the Padres plan to keep the rotation in its current order.